Asthma isn’t just a lung issue—it’s a whole-body, whole-nervous-system experience. Anyone living with asthma knows the feeling: the tight chest, the restricted breath, the sense that your body is working harder than it should. What many don’t realise is how closely the spine, rib cage, and nervous system influence breathing. At our Wellington chiropractic clinic, we often see people with asthma presenting with patterns of rib stiffness, spinal joint dysfunction, and high sympathetic (fight-or-flight) tone that can amplify breathing difficulties.
This is where chiropractic care steps in—not as a cure, but as a way to help the body move and regulate itself more effectively. By improving the function of the spine, enhancing rib mobility, and supporting the nervous system, chiropractic care may help people breathe with more ease and efficiency.
The Neurological Connection: Why Your Spine Matters for Your Lungs
Your lungs don’t work alone. Breathing is coordinated by your brainstem, autonomic nervous system, and the movement of your rib cage and spine. The nerves that help regulate the muscles of respiration—the diaphragm, intercostals, accessory breathing muscles—pass through the thoracic spine.
When there is a subluxation (a joint dysfunction that affects proper movement and neurological communication), it may alter how effectively these nerves fire. Research has shown that irritation to spinal joints can influence autonomic tone, often increasing sympathetic activity, which is associated with airway constriction and a heightened stress response (Budgell, 2000).
Asthma flare-ups have been linked to increased sympathetic dominance and reduced vagal (parasympathetic) activity (Kostikas et al., 2008). Chiropractic care aims to restore better balance within the nervous system by improving joint motion and reducing mechanical and neurological stress.
Breathing Mechanics: When Your Rib Cage Can’t Move, Your Lungs Can’t Either
Asthma episodes often lead to restricted rib motion, overuse of accessory breathing muscles, and a forward-flexed posture. Over time this can create a cycle where the body finds it harder and harder to take a full breath.
We often see:
• Stiff thoracic segments
• Limited rib expansion
• Overactive neck and shoulder muscles
• Shallow upper-chest breathing patterns
Improving rib mechanics through chiropractic adjustments, soft-tissue work, and movement strategies can make breathing more efficient. Studies show that thoracic spine mobility directly affects lung capacity and respiratory muscle activation (Kwak et al., 2016).
When the ribs move better, the lungs expand better. When the spine moves better, the nervous system adapts better.
Subluxation, Stress, and Airway Sensitivity
Asthma is heavily influenced by stress, and stress lives in the nervous system. A subluxation can alter input to the brain and has been shown to affect the body’s stress response (Pickar & Bolton, 2012). When the nervous system is in a chronic state of fight-or-flight, the airways can become more reactive, sensitive, and prone to constriction.
Chiropractic adjustments may help the nervous system regulate more effectively, helping the body adapt to stressors with greater ease. Many clients describe feeling “lighter,” “looser,” or “able to breathe deeper” after adjustments—not because the adjustment treats asthma directly, but because it helps restore better function to the systems involved in breathing.
A Wellington Approach: Chiropractic Care Tailored to Asthma
At our Wellington chiropractic clinic, care for people with asthma typically includes:
• Gentle thoracic and cervical adjustments to improve neurological communication
• Rib mobilisation to enhance natural expansion and breathing mechanics
• Diaphragmatic breathing retraining
• Postural support for better airflow
• Cranial work for parasympathetic regulation
• Guidance on movement strategies that keep the spine and rib cage functioning well
By improving spinal mobility and supporting neurological balance, chiropractic care helps remove barriers to full, efficient breathing.
It’s not about replacing medication or medical care—it’s about supporting the body to function more effectively alongside it.
Breathing for Life: Moving Better to Breathe Better
When your spine moves well, your rib cage moves well. When your rib cage moves well, your lungs expand more freely. When your nervous system is regulated, your airways respond with more ease and less reactivity.
Chiropractic care offers a powerful way to support the foundations of healthy breathing—not by replacing your asthma management plan, but by enhancing the neurological and mechanical systems that help your body breathe.
If you’re looking for a chiropractor in Wellington who focuses on neurological function, movement quality, and whole-body breathing mechanics, we’re here to support you.
Scientific References
Budgell B. (2000). Reflex effects of vertebral subluxation: the autonomic nervous system. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 23(2), 104–112.
Kostikas K., et al. (2008). The role of the autonomic nervous system in asthma. Respiratory Medicine, 102(3), 337–346.
Pickar J.G., Bolton P.S. (2012). Spinal manipulation alters sensorimotor integration: a review of neurophysiological mechanisms. Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology, 22(5), 785–794.
Kwak H., Cho S., & Kim M. (2016). The effect of thoracic mobilization on lung function in chronic respiratory disease. Journal of Physical Therapy Science, 28(3), 1105–1108.bedtime. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 9(11), 1195–1200.
Xie, L., et al. (2013). Sleep drives metabolite clearance from the adult brain. Science, 342(6156), 373–377.
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